MCP Servers

Silk supports the Model Context Protocol (MCP) — an open standard for connecting AI assistants to external tools, databases, APIs, and services. Once connected, Silk can read from and write to those systems as part of any conversation.

What MCP enables

With MCP servers, Silk can:

• Query your database (“how many active users do we have this month?”)
• Read and write files via a filesystem server
• Fetch data from APIs
• Interact with services like GitHub, Notion, Slack, or Linear
• Use any custom tool you expose as an MCP server

Adding an MCP server

1. Open the Silk panel and open the MCP integrator (Settings → MCP Servers → Add Server).
2. Enter the server name and the command to start it (or the URL for remote/hosted servers).
3. Click Add Server / Connect.

Once connected, Silk sees the server’s tools and can use them automatically.

Tip

Most hosted integrations publish a ready-made setup snippet (often labelled “Cursor”, “Claude”, or “MCP config”) on their docs page. You can usually paste that same command straight into Silk’s MCP integrator — no need to hand-write the config.

Hosted servers with OAuth

Many hosted servers (Notion is a good example) authenticate over OAuth. After you paste the command and click Add Server, Silk opens the provider’s sign-in page in your browser. Approve the connection there, return to Silk, and the server shows as connected with its tools available.

Servers that need an API key or account ID

Some providers (for example GoHighLevel / Lead Connector) need more than a generic command. In those cases you typically use the provider’s per-client endpoint and supply extra fields such as a location / account ID and a bearer API token you generate in that provider’s settings (often under Private Integrations). Paste the endpoint, fill in those fields, and connect.

Caution

Don’t enable every tool. If you give the AI too many tools at once it’s more likely to hallucinate or pick the wrong one. Enable only the tools you actually want that server to use.

Tip

The MCP ecosystem has hundreds of ready-made servers. Search mcp.run or the MCP server registry for integrations with popular tools.

Example: connecting a filesystem server

{
  "name": "filesystem",
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "/Users/you/projects"]
}

After connecting, you can ask Silk things like “list all TypeScript files in my projects folder” or “read the contents of my .env file”.

Example: connecting a GitHub server

{
  "name": "github",
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-github"],
  "env": {
    "GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "ghp_..."
  }
}

Walkthroughs: connecting real integrations

Silk’s MCP form supports remote HTTP streamable servers, which is how most hosted SaaS integrations connect. The two walkthroughs below show the two common auth styles end to end.

Asana (OAuth app)

Asana connects over OAuth, so you register an app on Asana’s side and let Silk sign in through it.

1. In Asana’s developer console, create a new app and choose the MCP app type. Agree to the terms and create it — you’ll get a Client ID and Client Secret.
2. In Silk, open the MCP integrator, switch to the form view, and choose the HTTP streamable transport.
3. Paste Asana’s MCP server URL (from Asana’s MCP docs) into the URL field, then add the Client ID and Client Secret.
4. Copy the redirect URL Silk shows and paste it into your Asana OAuth app’s settings — it must match exactly, or the connection is rejected.
5. Click Connect. Asana asks you to sign in and allow access (create/modify tasks, projects, and comments). Approve it.
6. Silk updates to connected — in the video all 35 Asana tools come through. You can now say “start a background agent and fetch my pending Asana tasks” and Silk queries the MCP directly.

Tip

If you get “redirect URL does not match”, re-copy Silk’s redirect URL into the Asana app and save — a trailing character or query string mismatch is the usual cause.

Systeme.io (API key)

Systeme.io uses a simpler API-key style — you generate a key and pass it with the server URL.

1. In Systeme, go to Profile → Settings → MCP and API keys and generate an MCP key. Give it a name (e.g. “Silk”) and, optionally, an expiry date. Keep the key private.
2. In Silk, open the MCP integrator, switch to the form view, and choose the HTTP streamable transport. Give the server a name (it’s required).
3. Paste Systeme’s remote server URL, then substitute your generated MCP key into the key field. Double-check there are no stray spaces around the key.
4. Click Add Server. Once it shows connected, try it: “start a background agent and look at the last few newsletters I sent in Systeme via the MCP.”

Caution

Treat the MCP key like a password. If you ever expose it (for example on screen), revoke and regenerate it from the same Systeme settings page.

Authentication

Many MCP servers require API keys or tokens. Pass these as environment variables in the server configuration. They are stored locally and never sent to Silk’s servers.

Managing servers

Go to Settings → MCP Servers to view all connected servers, disconnect them, or check their status. Servers are started when Silk launches and stopped when it quits.

Caution

Only connect MCP servers from sources you trust. A malicious server could instruct Silk to read sensitive files or take unintended actions.